Can-making equipment is nothing if not specialized. Yet the subsystems found on these machines offer a number of design lessons that can be applied more broadly by any engineer working to improve the performance and reliability of high-speed equipment.

Carbon fiber composites are nothing new in aerospace. They're being used increasingly in aircraft, satellite launchers, and spacecraft. What is new is their use in a satellite's fuel tank that has been designed to burn up on re-entry.

A new "smart catheter" senses the start of an infection and automatically releases an anti-bacterial substance. It is being tested at the University of Michigan in an effort to stop catheter-related blood and urinary tract infections.

Automotive moulder Plastic Omnium has deployed Free Field Technologies’ software, Actran/Acoustics and Vibro-Acoustics, so simulate the acoustic attenuation of plastic body panels and other car components.

BELPRE - A local plant will be spending millions of dollars on two natural gas steam boilers that will greatly reduce hazardous emissions. Kraton Polymers is planning to spend $50 million over the next three years on the installation of the two boilers, a new 10-mile natural gas supply line and a steam turbine to generate electrical power.

A bimetallic conical twin extruder barrel has demonstrated major durability benefits over its conventional nitrided counterpart, reports Martyn Denzel, sales manager for Ware-based Magog Industries.

Proco Machinery Inc., a leading supplier of automation systems for the plastics container industry, has launched the industry’s first integrated take-out system which incorporates a deflasher and leak testing system for space savings and reduced cost.

The number of passenger vehicles with turbocharged engines is expected to increase 80% globally by 2017 according to projections released by Honeywell Transportation Systems (Morris Township, NJ).

This change is driven by increased demand for automobiles that deliver fuel efficiency, performance, and reduced greenhouse gas emissions.

Cold Climate Innovation (CCI), a part of the Yukon Research Centre at Canada’s Yukon College in Whitehorse, Yukon Territory, is testing a machine at P & M Recycling that aims to convert scrap plastics into a diesel fuel.

The machine was developed by Japan’s Blest. The distributor of the system in North America is E.N.Ergy.
“We are incredibly pleased to have the first continuous-feed plastics-to-oil machine in North America, here in Yukon,” says Stephen Mooney, CCI director.

The new HR rotary valve comes with a wide range of specification options with easy manual handling functionality, achieved with sturdy linear rail configuration and conical rotor geometry.

Plastics & Rubber Machinery Manufacturing in the USBouncing backFrom car production to beverage bottling, activity in a variety of downstream industries affects the Plastics and Rubber Machinery Manufacturing industry. As a result of the various factors that affect downstream demand for machines that make plastic and rubber goods, industry revenue has exhibited high volatility since 2007. Declining domestic demand has led the industry to look abroad to stave off its US losses.

Workers are learning advanced manufacturing skills under a new machinist pilot program that started this week, a collaborative effort between Milacron Plastics Technologies and the University of Cincinnati Clermont College.

Badger Color Concentrates Inc. plans to develop its East Coast presence by opening a facility in Kings Mountain, N.C., by early fall.

The Mukwonago, Wis.-based business earlier this year bought a Kings Mountain building that had formerly been an Indian Motorcycle Co. factory. Now Badger is busy preparing the plant to produce liquid and concentrates, according to President Mike Fatta.

Airlite Plastics Co. has expanded into extrusion with the April 1 acquisition of S&L Plastics Inc. of Nazareth, Pa.

Airlite is a major injection molded packaging producer and expanded polystyrene foam processor in Omaha. The company did not disclose terms of the deal.

“We are excited to add the products, plastic processing capabilities and skilled employees from S&L Plastics,” Airlite President and CEO Brad Crosby said in a news release. “The addition of this facility provides us with new capabilities, markets and an eastern location allowing for future growth opportunities.”

KraussMaffei has extended its hydro-mechanical dual-platen injection molding machines in the medium clamping force range with the world premiere of its GX series.

Launched at a customer event at its headquarter in Munich, the GX Series features a redesigned locking device and guide shoe, among other new features.

Bolton, Ont.-based Husky Injection Molding Systems announced that it has completed the sale of Injectoplast, the former closure injection molding operation of KTW, to Austria’s Alpla.

The sale agreement was announced 24 January; the terms of the deal have not been disclosed.

Stuart Lichter has big plans for the former Goodyear plant in Tyler. Lichter, president of California-based investment firm Industrial Realty Group, or IRG, bought the 1.12 million-square-foot facility a few weeks ago and plans to reinvent the space to attract new businesses.

"Our plan basically is to release it," he said of the building, which sits on 155 acres on Texas Highway 31 West. "Take down pieces of it to make it more suitable for smaller users and leave pieces of it up so that it's a series of buildings that are more right-sized for the market."